


21

by bunymyun



Category: NU'EST
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, College, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gunshot Wounds, High School, It took me forever to write this, M/M, Mostly Fluff, NASA, Stabbing, WHY DID I WRITE THIS AGAIN, idk if that's how tags work but yeah, smut version will be uploaded later :), so much fluff i want to puke, someone gets really badly injured, spacey stuff, this is the pg version of this fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-04
Updated: 2017-08-04
Packaged: 2018-12-11 00:00:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11702568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunymyun/pseuds/bunymyun
Summary: Minhyun was born in 1976.He died in 1997.In 2017, he's happier than ever.





	21

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is the first fic I ever write on here (I 100% quit AFF), and surprise! It's a Nu'est fic. I'm very happy with how this fic came out. 
> 
> Firstly, thanks Teeg for listening to me rant about this fic to you even though I didn't really give you a whole lot of detail on it, I hope you don't kill me and only read the smut version because wowie that thing is even longer than this one. Secondly, I love Nu'est more than my own life and this is kind of my Love Letter to Love for still sticking around for so long and giving you guys glorious OTP content since we barely have any. Thirdly, there's probs a lot of mistakes in here and I'm sorry, I don't have a beta and I would mostly write this on my phone while waiting for classes to start. Fourth: I really hope you guys enjoy this, the tags up there ^ will probably make more sense when you read. 
> 
> -LC

He stopped aging at 21. It wasn’t because of some supernatural accident like turning into a vampire, don't be silly! Minhyun had simply been loved by the moon; it loved him so much, in fact, that he was to remain frozen until he too, felt love. Minhyun was on his way home from his winter finals when it happened. Humming along to Whitney  Huston’s  _ I Have Nothing _ , he had a skip in his step, elated that he would be home for the holidays. Winter in California wasn’t nearly as bad as the winters in Korea; here, he hadn’t seen a single speck of snow since he had moved for university. His way back home usually took about 15 minutes from the observatory to the dorms, but he never made it home.

The last thing he remembered was stepping into one of the back alleys because he wanted to cut five minutes off of his walk and hurry into his bed. He had had a particularly hard day at his internship as it was the last day and he couldn’t bear to part ways with the professors and his little space tour he gave to kids thrice a day for months. He had almost cried when one kid, a particularly spritely four year old would come in and stare wide-eyed at him, always listening intently to whatever  _ new _ fact Minhyun would sprout on him.  _ “I want to be just like you when I grow up!”  _ The kid would say, his smile growing brightly as Minhyun would pat his head and tell  him to dream bigger. The kid’s eyes would grow into the size of saucers, twinkling with all the interesting facts about space Minhyun would give him every time he visited. Minhyun missed him the most.

What Minhyun  _ did _ remember was that (what he assumed was) the next day, he woke up face down in a ditch, his body cold, hair nearly white, body covered in bruises. For the most part he was just sore, like he had been asleep for a long time at the wrong angle. If he really thought about it, even his skin had paled in the time he was ‘asleep’. 

Apparently, Minhyun had  _ disappeared _ . He had missed an entire year down to the date. He felt himself pause, his mind racing trying to come up with an explanation for him having missed an entire  _ year _ of his life. He couldn’t find one. He walked around his city, mind racing with ideas. He couldn’t have just  _ skipped _ a year of his life. That was impossible. But he did. His apartment was empty, and when he called his mother's home, there was no answer no matter how many times he called. He went back to his school to see if he could continue his classes, being met with strange looks from staff as they read that _ “Minhyun Hwang has been filed as deceased.”  _ Eventually, Minhyun gave up as the weeks passed, his life wasn't the same, if his hair and body were anything short of an obvious indication. 

_ What am I even supposed to do now? I'm dead according to all paperwork, and I don't even know how I  _ died. Sighing, Minhyun found himself walking to the church he used to frequent upon his mother’s request. It was the closest to the school and one of the only Korean community churches in his neighborhood. Upon entering he could hear the quiet whispers of an elderly woman speaking to a priest. Not wanting to disturb them, Minhyun took a seat in the back, lowering one of the kneeling benches in the pews. Lowering his head, Minhyun began to pray harder than he ever had before. He prayed that he could find an answer, that he could see the path he was supposed to go on now that he had lost everything. 

A hand on his shoulder alerted him that he was not only being observed but heard. He expected to see the priest, but instead was met with the ice blue eyes of a blonde being. Glancing around, Minhyun could see specks of dust glinting in the air, unmoving. His breath shook as the temperature in the church dropped. “Who-” he collected himself. “Who are you?” 

The figure smiled at him, and pointed up. Minhyun followed the finger, not understanding.  _ God? No way.  _ The figure smiled brightly now, as if it could hear Minhyun's thoughts. Shaking its head, the figure held out its hand for Minhyun to take. Staring, Minhyun did nothing. He didn't want to, he was scared. 

The figure looked sad, and suddenly, Minhyun found himself taking their hand. He couldn't leave them hanging like that. He  _ had _ asked for an answer, no matter how terrifying it might have been. He found himself being guided out from the church, to the back alley where Minhyun had disappeared. 

“This is where I knew your life would end. So I have you a second chance.” 

Minhyun shivered as the figure spoke. “What do you mean? I don't even know you.” 

The figured faced Minhyun before glancing up again. “You know me very well.” This time, when Minhyun looked up, he could see the moon very clearly. “I knew your life would end the second you walked into this alley.” The voice turned sad. “I had hoped you would avoid it. But it was your destiny, anyway.” 

Minhyun frowned. “So why didn't you stop me from dying?” The figure shook its head. “I cannot prevent a death, those are written in your life line. But I can give life back. That is  _ my _ destiny. To give life to those who are lost too early. You are a special case though, Minhyun.” The figure broke out into a grin. “You are my favorite human, so instead of making you invisible like my other lives restored, I let you keep your body.” 

“I don't understand.” Minhyun said, locking eye contact with the figure. 

“No one was able to find your body because I gave it back to you. You are neither completely alive, nor are you dead. I gave you the kiss of defunct life.” The figure grinned, eyes twinkling, blonde hair looking like it floated. “Don't worry though, if you find your true love, you will be given a full life once more. Until then, you will remain this way. My way.” 

Minhyun felt himself want to collapse. He felt his body freeze from the inside out, his bones rattled inside of him. He was dead, but he was alive. “Be warned Minhyun, do not go looking for your murderer. I've seen their end, and believe me, he will face a death worse than yours and the others lives he took.” 

Minhyun swallowed as the figure said this to him. “What do I do now?” He whispered. 

The figured held his shoulders firmly. “You start over. Here, there. You decide. Your story has already been written by us, but you decide the twists and turns. Death was only the beginning for you, Minhyun.”

“And you?” Minhyun asked. “What about you?” 

The figured chuckled, “I'm always going to be around, in the same spot. Just look for me in the sky.” 

Feeling more at peace, Minhyun nodded. The figure disappeared before Minhyun could say much more. 

 

* * *

 

 

Years passed, forcing him to move from job to job. He worked as a private school tutor, having faked his degrees in order to be paid by high earning families. By 2001, Minhyun had tutored dozens of students who all made it to Ivy League schools. His paychecks were enough to make people think he was rich himself. He wasn't happy though; none of these kids really  _ listened  _ to anything he said, more or less they just paid attention to what they needed to pass and get their perfectionist parents off their backs. It always worked out in the end because Minhyun always taught them well. 

Minhyun enrolled himself in a coding class, learning how to develop computer programs to pass the time on the side and eventually created a software to help tutor thousands of students online. His software became coveted by private schools, and he received thousands of offers for his software. He didn't want to sell out at first, but then what was the point of his work if it never came to fruition? He sold the software to Apple and Microsoft earning him millions as well as stocks in both companies. 

With his fortunes, Minhyun gave his money to churches and monasteries to help children without families. He wanted them to find love and happiness. He loved the way their eyes sparkled when he would visit with new clothes or inexpensive toys and books. But what he loved most was when they would ask him questions, about anything and everything. He was a  _ smart young man _ ,  _ after all _ the nuns would say. Minhyun always smiled brightly at the kids who would ask him about school, his work, his  _ family _ . He would make up stories at that point, saying he had a sister and a dog back home in Korea. How she was happily married now and had a son. The kids would laugh and smile whenever Minhyun would tell them about his sisters silly little dog. 

On the inside, he was dying. He missed his mother terribly, and if he had had a sister, he would miss her too. He didn't have the heart to tell the children that he was an orphan now, too. His struggle was not as great as theirs, he would want to say, but never did. Instead he focused on telling stories about how his hair had turned ice blonde. The girls in particular loving the story he came up with.  _ “I love space, and one day, when I was really  _ really  _ sad, the moon came to me and kissed my tears away, she showed me she loved me, too.”  _

The nuns in the orphanages usually smiled and swooned at Minhyun, always taken with his curious stories about the moon. “ _ You should just be an astronomer,”  _ they would tell him.  _ “See what the moon is really like!” _ Minhyun would just smile at the nuns and look up in the direction of the moon, “I already know them well.” 

2007 was a turning point for Minhyun. He had enrolled himself in college back in 2003 and was now graduating. He had managed to get his grades from the 90’s and managed to pass off as a man in his early 30’s if he told people he had had surgery to ‘ _ look this good’ _ . Mostly, people just didn't believe his age, so he went along with whatever people would assume. It was easier than saying  _ ‘I'm actually dead’.  _ On what would have been Minhyun’s 30th birthday, he applied for a job at Griffith Observatory to give tours of the telescope and the museum. He wanted to be a curator for the California Space Center but that plan had fallen through as they had just hired new staff and he was technically an inexperienced graduate. 

It was at Griffith that Minhyun had felt more at home than before. The Observatory’s director knew about Minhyun’s  _ rich _ past, and had hired him almost immediately, knowing that the machinery would be in decent hands. The job itself was simple: make sure people didn't touch anything they shouldn't, talk to them about the telescope, drop a few facts here and there and then, lead them all to the balcony so they could get a money-shot of the Hollywood sign. 

His favorite days were still the school field trips. Today however, things felt off. Minhyun had been late to work, just barely arriving on time for the indoor tour with the high school freshman class. He had been given a list with the names of all 100 students even though he would only be in charge of students A-M. The teachers had preferred to do it this way so a lot of the students wouldn't be able to choose to be with their friends and cause disruptions during the tour.  _ Smart,  _ Minhyun had thought. 

Halfway through talking about the Star Parties held every Saturday, he felt like he was being watched. Brushing it off, Minhyun continued, “Col. Griffith intended for these star parties to be a moment of learning and bonding between aspiring astronomers, families and the scientific community in general. If you are interested in attending one of these, they are held every last Saturday of the month from 2pm to 9:30pm. You can find flie-” he was cut off by a sharp “Excuse me!” from somewhere close behind him. 

Turning to face the voice, Minhyun was surprised to see that the voice in question was a student who was actually pretty far in the  _ back _ . “Yes?” Minhyun replied. 

“Do you have to have parental supervision to attend the Star Party?” A boy not too tall, and not too short had asked, probably standing on his tiptoes to be seen from back there. Smiling Minhyun shook his head. “No, you do  _ not  _ need parental supervision to attend, however, as you're all  _ minors _ I highly suggest you do.” 

The boy smiled, nodding before going back to goofing off with his friends. Minhyun continued his tour, leading the students out onto the balcony for their pictures and then to the gift store. Still, he continued to feel eyes on him until the boy from before walked up to him. 

“It's you, isn't it?” He said. The boys sentence was more of a statement than a question. “It has to be.” 

Minhyun stared at the shorter boy. “I'm who, exactly?” 

The boy continued, “Yeah, it's definitely you. But what's up with the Genie in a Bottle hair?” 

Minhyun raised an eyebrow. “I'm sorry?” 

The kid was beginning to lose his patience. “Ya...don't lie to me! How the hell is it possible you haven't aged  _ at all  _ since I last saw you?” The kid raised a hand and poked a finger on Minhyun’s cheek. Minhyun flinched back, very confused. “You have the wrong person kid.” 

The kid made a noise in the back of his throat before speaking, “You know, I used to want to be you, and all you told me was to  _ dream bigger.” _

Minhyun’s eyes immediately widened. “You-” he shook his head.  _ That's not possible. The moon said no one would remember me after all this time… _

Smiling at the taller’s reaction, the boy began to bounce on his heels. “I knew it!” His hands were flailing around in excitement. “I  _ knew _ you'd remember me!” He held out his hand, “I'm Aron! Aron Kwak.” 

Minhyun continued to stare wide eyed as the kid held out his hand. It had been 10 years since he had last seen the boy, and he had grown up quite well, he was lean and had big eyes, his smile reached from ear to ear and he seemed like an extraordinarily soft soul. If he had remembered Minhyun, then this boy must have been written as part of Minhyun's life...  _ right?  _

“Aron!! We're leaving, come on!!” A deeper voice yelled from across the balcony. The boy glanced back nodding. “Coming!!” He then faced Minhyun once again, reaching his arms out to hug the man. “See you soon,  _ hyung!”  _

Minhyun remained in his spot as the class met up and walked down the stairs to their bus.  _ It's him.  _ He thought. He smiled the rest of the day, remembering all the stories he used to tell the kid.  _ He's growing up well _ ,  _ I’m glad.  _

 

* * *

 

 

Minhyun continued to see Aron pop in to the observatory every once in a while after that, always walking around with a sketch pad, sitting around and staring at Minhyun as he worked. If Minhyun didn't know better, he would think the kid had some sort of crush on him, but that was ridiculous. 

The days passed by and Minhyun found himself looking  _ forward _ to the days that Aron would pop in. From time to time, the kid would bring him some kind of snack and dozens of questions, always smiling and never leaving until the end of Minhyun’s shift. He got comfortable seeing the kid around, before he knew it, Minhyun found himself setting up a routine with Aron: show up, do the tours, eat snacks with him in between, and then watch the sun set as Minhyun answered his questions. 

“Last question, kid. I've got an early flight tomorrow.” Minhyun said, watching as Aron seemed to shrink into the size of a toddler. “Ahh, don't worry! I'll be back in three months!” 

Aron pouted at the statement. “Please don't go! Who's going to answer all my questions?!” 

Minhyun leaned back, laughing. “Don't act like you don't know what the internet is.” He patted Aron's head. “I promise the internet can answer your questions.” 

Nodding, Aron sighed. “Fine, last question: why did you disappear?” 

Minhyun didn't skip a beat. “Classified.” He laughed, “You always ask me that. When are you going to give up?” 

“Never?” 

“That's fair.” 

They got up, making their way to the elevator for the last time in three months.    
  


* * *

 

 

Minhyun spent the next three months in Alaska. He had no particular reason for going other than he wanted to get away from Los Angeles. He’d spent the last ten years alone, and was getting a little tired of it. The moon had promised him that if he found love he would start to live again, but Minhyun doubted that would happen. He had tried dating in Los Angeles, had seen several girls, younger and older than him, some into their 40’s but he hadn’t found anyone that made his heart pitter-patter. There was one girl, who came very close to it. 

She was brilliant, beautiful and loved the moon, too. Minhyun loved her smile, the way she would giggle when she would find the correct constellation, every aspect of he was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside. Minhyun would spend the days reading poetry with her, charting stars and watching her glow with happiness. But his hair never changed back, his skin didn’t gain color. Instead, the girl, Reyna, began to lose color, her hair becoming pale, eyes turning into a light blue. Minhyun was killing her, he could see it as every day passed. His heart hurt as he thought about her dying like this. He never meant for it to happen, but there she was, her hair turning white as well. 

_ “I can’t do this to you, Reyna.”  _

_ “Minhyun, I’ll be okay.”  _

_ He shook his head. “No, I’m sorry. This shouldn’t be happening to you because of me. It’s not your destiny.”  _

Her soft cries were the last thing he heard as he made the decision to leave, his feet dragging him out of the house, never to return. She deserved a happy life, without him. 

 

* * *

 

Minhyun’s rented apartment overlooked  East Twin Lake, the remaining of Barrow as a backdrop; the perfect place for Minhyun to rest and enjoy some time to himself and explore the stars.  

He spent most of the first two weeks mapping out Barrow’s sky, staring for hours on end at East Twin. He came to Alaska for a reason: 67 consecutive days of night. Minhyun had thought it was the perfect opportunity to map out stars, and maybe find a few of his own. He was in his thirties now, forever frozen like the trees around him. While he was preparing his telescope and his computer, he heard the sure sound of a heavy object falling into the lake. He froze, not entirely sure if it was a whale, a person or a boulder from the mountains. 

Holding his breath, he took a pair of binoculars from his luggage and went back out to look; the darkness making it close to impossible to see the surface of the lake or the beginning of the skyline. A few seconds later, he saw the outline of a boat, a rope leading into the water. 

A fisherman. Minhyun smiled. Right now, his clock read 5 am. It made sense that a fisherman would be out at this time; a reflex of years of work. He knew it well. 

Minhyun remained watching the rope until it slowly came up and held what looked like hundreds of fish. Maybe less, he couldn’t tell. All he could think about was  _ who is this guy? _

Later that day at around 4pm, Minhyun found his answer: the fisherman lived across the street from him in a small shack next to the fish shop.  Minhyun saw him come home to unload his truck, and gut the fish for his regular customers. His figure was shorter than him, but wider. The man carried fish onto his displays by the crate, each one labeled something different; Minhyun didn’t really care what was what, only that he enjoyed watching this man skin the scales off the fish; it relaxed Minhyun to a degree where he hadn’t noticed he had sat down to watch the shorter man. 

It wasn’t until an older lady who walked past had noticed Minhyun sitting on the cold sidewalk that he had felt himself come back to reality. “You should just talk to him, dear.” she had said, smiling as she continued on her way to the fish shop. The shorter man immediately turning around and smiling in a way that made his eyes form half moons. Minhyun was enthralled by him. He looked burly, had a bit of stubble, piercings adorned his ears, and if he wasn’t mistaken, a tattoo ran down his neck. He was  _ interesting _ and Minhyun was nothing if not curious. 

He forced his feet to move him across the street, not really sure what he was going to do or say. 

“Hello, what can I get for ya?” the man looked to be in his early 30’s. He was even more handsome up close and Minhyun felt his curiosity pique. “Actually, could you tell me which of your tuna would be best for kimbap?” 

The shorter man smiled. “Ah, a Korean! So nice to see more of us out here.” He extended his hand to Minhyun, who took it, shook and smiled back. “Follow me inside, I have the better tuna in the fridge next to the bass.” 

Nodding, Minhyun followed without a word. 

“You know, I haven’t run into any other Korean families out here. Are you a visitor?”

Minhyun nodded, watching as the man bent over to reach deep inside the fridge at the end of the hall. “Yeah, I am. I was hoping I wouldn’t stick out too much.” 

A whole-hearted laugh came from within the fridge. “Oh, man. Trust me. With that hair and height, y9ou’d stick out anywhere.” The man turned back with a smaller crate full of fish. “I mean that in a good way.” He winked and smiled before asking how many pounds of fish Minhyun would want. 

He thought carefully. “I...um, enough tuna for two.” 

The shorter man’s face fell slightly. “Oh, your girlfriend must have sent you out in the cold I imagine.” 

Minhyun shook his head, chuckling. “Ah, no actually. Would you want to join me, though, uh..?” 

“Baekho. My name is Baekho.” 

“Nice name, Baekho. So how about joining me for dinner and maybe a few beers? I don’t know anyone in town and like you said, barely any Korean folk around here.” 

Packing the fish, Baekho nodded. “Sounds great, actually. Leave me your address and I’ll see you around 7 or 8?” 

“Eight sounds better for me. I have some work I want to finish up first.” 

“Right, of course. Eight it is, then.” 

“How much for the fish?”

“Just pay me in beer. I was planning on making tuna today anyway.”

 

* * *

 

 

Baekho arrived at exactly 8 o’clock, with a small flower pot. Minhyun hadn’t been expecting that. 

“Flowers?” 

“Yeah, sorry. My mother always told me it’s rude to show up empty handed to someone’s house.” He rubbed the back of his neck as he handed over the flower pot. 

“Ha, it must be a universal thing; my mother did the same when I was younger.” Minhyun said it with as little pain in his voice as possible. It had been quite a while since he had spoken of his mother, and yet here he was, talking to Baekho, a complete stranger, about her. 

“I’m sure she would be proud of you for being such a good kid.” 

Minhyun laughed at that. “We’re probably the same age, you know.” Baekho laughed. “No way, I’m 31, you?” 

“Thirty-one.” 

Baekho scoffed. “You...must have an amazing skin-care routine if that’s true.” 

Snorting, Minhyun lead Baekho to the kitchen. “Nah, I just have one of those age-less faces and then one day I’m going to wake up looking like a truck hit me in the face with age.” 

Baekho had to hold his stomach from how hard he started to laugh. “Alright, I get it. You've got one of those faces. Like you're carved from marble but then are actually a much too ripe banana on the inside.” 

“Exactly!” Minhyun paused. “Wait! That was mean.” 

Baekho took a seat at the table now, following Minhyun's movements with his eyes instead of following him around the apartment. 

It was Minhyun's turn to reach into the fridge now; he grabbed the plate full of kimbap and a six pack of soju. “I promised you beer, but I only have soju…” 

Baekho nodded. “That's fine. Probably only get us a little more drunk than the beer anyway.” 

Minhyun nodded settling the soju bottles down next to the napkin holder on the table. “I ended up making tuna rolls. I forgot to buy pickled radish, sorry.” 

Baekho smiled, his teeth showing. “That’s okay as long as you have soy sauce.” 

Minhyun couldn’t help himself, he burst out laughing, almost dropping the plate in his hands. “I do, it’s in the fridge door.” 

Baekho nodded getting up and going to get it for Minhyun as he settled the food on the table. “Oh! Sriracha!” 

Minhyun was smiling from ear to ear as Baekho sat down across from him. “Well, dig in big guy.” Minhyun said, reaching for the first tuna roll he laid eyes on. Baekho’s hand flew for the same one. “Here, let me..” Baekho picked up the tuna roll Minhyun intended on grabbing and lifted it to Minhyun’s mouth. “Open up.” 

Doing as he was told, Minhyun felt his face flush, a deep red sweeping across his cheeks that he couldn’t even blame on the alcohol yet. He took a bite of the tuna roll, Baekho pushing the rest in, his fingers grazing Minhyun’s lips before reaching for a roll of his own, licking his fingers as he did so. “You’re cute.” he said as he finished his first roll. 

Minhyun choked on a halfway chewed roll. “I’m sorry?”

Baekho scoffed. “Wait, was I invited for something other than dinner?” he asked. Minhyun remained still, thinking before he spoke. “To be truthful, I don’t know  _ why _ I invited you to dinner like this. I just thought you were really…” Minhyun chose his words carefully, “Interesting to watch.” 

Baekho smirked as he raised an eyebrow. “So you’ve been watching me, huh?” 

Minhyun spluttered. “I- wait no, that’s not what I..” 

“No, no, it’s fine, really. I have a nice body shape, and a great ass. I get stared at a lot. By men and women. Kids do it too because I’m scary apparently.” Baekho laughed as Minhyun seemed to relax as he spoke. “It’s not the first time anyone’s asked me back to their place for dinner, either.” 

Minhyun let a small smile cover his face. “Really?” 

Baekho nodded, his feet starting to graze Minhyun’s legs as he did. “I’ve just never said yes because no one had ever caught  _ my  _ eye.” 

Minhyun gasped as Baekho’s foot came closer to his thighs. “Oh.” 

“Are you still hungry Minhyun-ssi?”

Minhyun gulped, “I think I prefer something else now.” 

“Hm, interesting.” Baekho said as Minhyun stood up, following suit. 

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning, Minhyun woke up with a tickle in his throat, a pleasant hum in his head and arms wrapped securely around him. 

Baekho looked younger in his sleep, Minhyun couldn’t help but notice. He stirred as he stared. “Hm, morning, Minhyun.” 

“Min is fine.” 

“Alright, Min.” Baekho moved up from laying down. “How about we go get breakfast. It’s my day off and I’d like to show you my boat.” 

Minhyun arched an eyebrow. “Was that a euphemism?” 

Baekho laughed as he reached down to grab his boxers. “You wish it was.” 

Minhyun tried to laugh, but ended up coughing. “Sorry, I should’ve warned you.” Minhyun smiled. “It’s okay, really.” 

“So, boat?” Baekho asked as he pulled on his shirt and Minhyun’s sweater from the night before. 

“Right. Boat.” 

 

* * *

 

 

The walk to Baekho’s truck was the coldest Minhyun had ever allowed himself to be before 9 am in his life. Baekho helped keep his hands warm, at least. “Get in before you turn into Jack Frost.” 

“Very funny, Baekho. But I’d like you to know I’m more of a Frosty, thank you very much.” 

“Do you get motion sickness? I feel like I should have asked that before I decided to take you on a boat.” 

Minhyun shook his head. “Not that I know of, but I guess we’ll find out?” 

Baekho nodded, driving to the docs. “Lets hope you’ll be fine.” 

The boat wasn’t as bad as Minhyun had thought it would be, in fact he really enjoyed the gentle rocking. Baekho let him in the cabin so they could stay warm, a fake chimney acted as a heater, while Baekho also brought out blankets in case Minhyun got too cold. “If we’re lucky, we can probably see some whales.” 

Minhyun became excited. “I’ve never seen a whale before!” 

Baekho moved to make some coffee for the both of them. “Well, if you don’t see them today, hopefully you’ll see some next time.” 

“Next time?” Minhyun asked. 

Nodding, Baekho added sugar to the cups. “Of course. If you’d like, that is.” 

Minhyun snuggled up into his blankets. “As long as you give me coffee and blankets, I’m yours.” 

Baekho poured boiling hot water into the cups from his water dispenser. “Good. You could probably do your star-gazing thing from here, too. Save yourself some rent.” 

Minhyun’s eyes widened. “You’d let me ...live here and do work…?” 

Baekho shrugged. “I don’t see why not. We’re both adults, I have space.” He grinned. “Plus, we already slept together and neither one of us ended up dead, so I’m guessing neither one of us is a serial killer.” 

Minhyun laughed earnestly, his eyes closing halfway as he did. “I guess that’s true.” He thought about it for a little but before answering, “Sounds great.” 

 

* * *

 

 

Weeks passed since then, and Minhyun found himself happier than ever. Baekho made jokes all the time and the two of them just  _ fit  _ together. Minhyun loved the way that Baekho would make him feel at ease, the way Baekho would laugh at his own stupid jokes. He even loved the way Baekho would get shy when Minhyun would compliment him for something. A grown man acting bashful was something Minhyun rarely saw anymore considering everyone always thought he was the younger one. 

“Min, can I ask you something?” Baekho sat across from him at the dining table in the boat’s cabin. 

“Yeah, sure. What’s up?” 

Baekho took a deep breath. “There’s something important I’ve been wanting to ask for a little while now.” 

Minhyun heard the concern in his voice. “What is it…?” 

Baekho sighed as he gained courage. “I know you’re leaving a the end of the month, and I just … I wanted to know if,” he paused. He looked at Minhyun and took his hands in his. “I got a job.” 

Minhyun raised an eyebrow. “A job?” 

Baekho nodded. “Yeah, a job. I’d get to work with marine biologists on submarines.” 

“And that means..?” 

Baekho looked sad. “I wondered if you wanted to come with me?”

Minhyun’s mouth hung open. “Go with you...to where?”

“Australia.” 

Minhyun gasped. It had been nearly 3 months that he was with Baekho, and he had yet to develop silver or blonde in his hair like Reyna had...plus he was happy...and even though he couldn’t tell if he was again or not, he  _ did _ kind of want to go. He had absolutely no real reason to go back to Los Angeles, after all. 

“I…” Minhyun looked at Baekho again, memorizing his facial features. 

“I can’t.” 

Baekho’s eyes twinkled. Minhyun could see the sadness flash in his eyes. “I get it. It’s a lot to ask; we’re not even really together..” 

Minhyun felt bad now. “It’s not that, Baekho. I just can’t leave the country like this. I’d have loose ends and too many things to have to fix before I go to Australia with you.” 

Baekho felt his soul brighten. “You’ll come with me?” 

Minhyun nodded. “Yeah, as soon as I fix things back at work and don’t leave any loose ends, I’ll join you in Australia.” 

Baekho smiled wide, tears slipping past his eyes. “Oh, Min! Thank you. I love you so much.” 

Minhyun felt himself grin, his life was better now. He was happy, he was moving on with life… so why did he feel like going to Australia was both a good and a bad thing?

 

* * *

 

 

Minhyun returned to Los Angeles at the end of the month, his findings all in one folder that he protected with his life. He was welcomed at the Observatory with warm smiles and some tears. 

“I didn’t think the day would come so soon, Minhyun.” 

Minhyun shook tears out of his eyes. “Neither did I.” 

His boss smiled warmly. “Well, best get on with your last week, then.” 

“Thank you, sir.” Minhyun shook his hand and watched his boss retreat back to his office. 

Before Minhyun could turn around he felt arms wrap around him, his heart speeding up upon contact. “You’re back!”

_ Aron. _ Minhyun thought, a mental huff passing through him. How could he have forgotten about the sprite? 

Minhyun turned to face the younger kid, not breaking the hug, instead just letting his clothes twist around him. He looked down at him. “Yeah, I am.” 

Minhyun felt a pit form at the bottom of his stomach just thinking about how he would have to tell this kid that he was only back for a week and that he would likely not come back. 

“I missed you,” Aron said. His voice cracked a little around the edges.  _ Is he crying? _ Minhyun looked closely at the face buried in his chest; sure enough, the boy was crying his eyes out. 

“Hey, hey. Aron. Don’t cry! Why are you crying?” Minhyun was more alarmed than anything. “Did you really miss me that much?” 

Aron didn’t reply, he simply started bawling. His head moved in awkward circles. “Is that a yes?” Minhyun teased as he grabbed the boy’s arms and unwrapped him from his torso. Aron sniffled as Minhyun got a good look at him. The boy finally nodded. 

“You were gone way too long. Three months felt like years.” He responded, his sniffles dwindling down to a raspy voice. 

Minhyun thought it was sweet. This kid really cared that much about him. 

Maybe it  _ was _ a crush. 

_ Oh.  _ Maybe it was a  _ crush _ . Now Minhyun just felt plain cruel for possibly hurting this kid when he left for Australia. 

“Aron, we should talk.” 

The shorter boy looked up from his shoes in alarm. “That doesn’t sound good at all.” 

Minhyun pressed his lips together into a flat line. Sighing, he let his shoulders fall, posture going from professional to relaxed. “I don’t think you’re going to like this at all.” 

Aron’s eyes began to well up with tears. “You’re leaving again, aren’t you…?” 

Minhyun placed a hand on the kid’s shoulder. “I-” he looked at Aron in the eyes. “Yeah. I’m leaving for Australia in 4 days.” 

Aron’s tears slipped down his face. “But, why? You promised we would have all the time to talk about space!” 

Minhyun frowned. “Aron. You are not a child, and neither am I. I can’t stay here because of you, and that might sound selfish, but this is my entire academic life- my career on the line.”  _ And my actual life, too…  _

Aron’s tears had long since stopped, his eyebrows now pinched together in anger. “Fine. Go away.” 

He had not expected that response. He hadn’t expected  _ any _ response to be honest. Minhyun had completely disregarded Aron’s existence. He watched as Aron threw his hand off his shoulder, making a beeline for the exit. 

“I’m sorry.” he said to no one. 

 

 

Minhyun’s week went by quickly. He packed his things at home when he could, everything he left behind was to be donated to one of his favorite orphanages. Everything was packed and ready to go by the Thursday before he left. His working visa, passport, ID and everything he needed to move to Australia was ready to go on his counter next to his carry-on bag. 

Minhyun looked at his phone that he would surely have to trade in his phone when he moved.  _ So expensive, too. _

Minhyun’s doorbell rang, startling him.  _ Who?  _

He walked to the front room to open the door, his hand on the baseball bat he would keep there in case of intruders. Looking through the peephole, he saw Aron. Minhyun all but ripped the door from its hinges. 

“What are you doing here?! How did you-” Aron hugged the taller man. 

“I’m sorry!” he said. He was crying again. “I’m sorry I was so mean to you, Minhyun, I was just really upset. I had to find you, I begged your boss to tell me where you lived. I’m sorry.” 

Sighing, Minhyun let the crying boy into his apartment. “You can’t just go around basically stalking people Aron. That’s wrong, and messed up and a little creepy. Don’t do it again.” 

Nodding, Aron whispered, “Not like I could, anyway.”

“Well, are you going to tell me why you’re here or not?” Minhyun was slightly irritated now, watching Aron scuffle about his apartment, looking at the last of his boxes. 

The younger pouted, “Yeah. But, I brought you something first.” 

Minhyun waited, pointedly remaining where he stood.

Aron smiled as he reached behind him to pull off his backpack. “I thought I would give you something small since I don’t know where you’re going, or how long you’ll be gone. I just want you to know that I’ll miss you.” Minhyun smiled at that. 

Aron reached inside his bag, pulling out a small box, much like an engagement ring box. Minhyun’s eyes widened. 

“Aron...what did you…” 

The shorter laughed. “Don’t worry, Minhyun. I didn’t buy this. I made it.” Aron stood up properly to face Minhyun. 

“It’s a wooden ring, I carved a constellation on it... I just… I want you to have it.” Aron blushed as he held it up for Minhyun. Minhyun felt his eyes swell up, but remained calm. A confession. 

Minhyun felt his heart clench. This kid was about to confess to him, and Minhyun had to deny him in some nice way or form, probably accept the gift if he knew him any better otherwise he’d cry again, and … he was a mess. Minhyun was worried about this kid, about how it would affect him when he left for an adventure with Baekho. 

“Aron...I can’t accept that.”  _ I can’t accept you. _ Minhyun wanted to scream.  _ You’re 13 for pete’s sake.  _  Aron smiled. “You don’t have to accept it, I’m leaving it here with you one way or another.” 

Minhyun sighed in defeat, holding out his hand. “Fine.” 

Aron beamed at Minhyun. “Thanks. Oh, and one last question for old time’s sake?” 

Minhyun nodded. “One last question.” 

Aron smiled as he looked Minhyun in the eyes. “Will you at least give me a shot in the future? I know I’m a kid now, but I want to grow up to be someone you can depend on, and, hopefully, fall in love with.” 

Aron stood up, his chest puffing out slightly to make him look bigger. Minhyun thought he looked like a duck. 

“Aron, I-” Minhyun choked on his words. How could he say no? He was probably never going to see him again, anyway. 

Looking at Aron, standing all proud and certain, Minhyun felt himself walk towards him. His feet taking slow, heavy steps towards the younger boy. He was possessed, he was sure of it. Minhyun wrapped his arms around Aron, holding him closely, tightly as if he wanted to smother him with what he couldn’t bring himself to say. “I promise.” he said; he knew he was lying but he said it anyway. 

 

* * *

 

 

“Congratulatitons to Loyola High’s Graduating Class of 2011!!” 

Aron’s long-time Dean of Education saluted him and his classmates as they walked onto the stage set up for their graduation on their lacrosse field. He could hear the loud screaming and chanting as his name was called up, his sisters blaring horns from the stands, his parents holding up giant cut outs of his face. Aron smiled brightly as the swim team rushed from their seats and pretended to sweep his path with their caps. “Oh Captain, Our Captain!!” the Shakespeare club shouted from their seats as they stood on their chairs to salute their president. The golf club screamed as loud as they could as Aron walked past each of them, causing chaos all around. 

He felt like he was on top of the world; nothing could stop him now. He had perfect grades, perfect SAT scores, a full ride scholarship to UCLA and a huge determination to go the Australian Space Academy and work for Skynet. He had plans, he had goals, and never once has Aron not gotten what he wanted when he worked for it. He didn’t know when to quit.    
  


* * *

 

 

His first year of college went  smoothly, Aron had managed to impress his professors in all of his major’s classes. His roommate was another science major like him, only he had taken the neuroscience route. Together, they went out and danced the nights away in Downtown Nightclubs. Aron’s roommate was a damn good dancer, too. JR was always doing random tuts when he couldn’t focus, making his arms look like they were actually detaching from his body; it kinda freaked Aron out a bit but he never complained, it was fun watching and joining in sometimes. 

“Hey Aron I’m going to the club tonight, wanna come?” JR asked, slipping on his jacket. 

Shaking his head, and gesturing to his stack of books, Aron declined. 

“Oh, come on dude! You’ve been working on that project for weeks. It’s perfect. You’ll be fine with one night off.” JR shook his friend. “Come on, just a few hours and then you can come back and I won’t even complain. Plus, you really,  _ really _ need a girlfriend or something.” 

“Ha, thanks, JR. But you already know I don’t  _ do _ girls.” 

Shrugging, JR giggled. “Sorry, bad pun. And I know you don’t, but you should still come.” 

Sighing, Aron shook his head as he got up and dared to put on a pair of jeans. “Fine. But if I’m not having fun by midnight, I’m coming back without you.” Nodding, JR smiled. “That’s fair.”    
  


* * *

 

 

As it would turn out, Aron ended up having a lot of fun the whole night. He danced with JR pressed against him, hands flowing along to the beat over each others bodies. The usual tension they had whenever JR was strung out and not busy finding a conquest. Ten minutes later however, JR disappeared, leaving Aron to his own devices. His own devices leading him to the streets, he wasn’t drunk, not by a long shot, but he was definitely warmer than he usually was in his jacket on a November night. 

Aron wanted to go for a walk to be able to work off the dull buzz in his head. He shouldn’t have been drinking to begin with, but this was his freshman year and dammit he was going to live it to the fullest. Turning the corner to the street that lead back to campus, Aron found the street was illuminated by the moon. The street was brighter than he had ever seen it, glancing up, he saw the moon was waning. He smiled at the sky since it smiled first. 

“I wonder if he was watching you, too.” Aron said, his smile fading as he thought about Minhyun again. Every time he looked at the moon, Aron felt better about that night he had confessed to Minhyun. He was just a kid, but he still felt the same. Now, Aron was growing up for real. He was learning to live on his own, was still in school, had an internship starting in the summer at the Observatory. His life was headed in amazing directions, but he didn’t know how he would ever find Minhyun. His heart clenched every time he thought about it. 

“What are you up to nowadays..? I hope you’re eating well. I hope you’re happy…” he said out loud to no one. He looked at the moon for longer than he thought, his mind sobering up quicker than he had anticipated. Tears slipped past Aron’s eyes as he decided to stop thinking about Minhyun. 

He dragged his feet step by step, thinking of things that made him happy. Not watching where he was going, Aron turned into the wrong alley.

Eyes wide, Aron stopped dead in his tracks. There was a deal going on, or some kind of stand off for all he knew. He was not supposed to be there, at all. The men in front of Aron looked up, suddenly growing quiet and slowly reaching into their back pockets. Aron knew what that meant; as quick as his body would allow, Aron turned on his heels the space around him seeming to slow down. He was able to catch out of the corner of his eye the flash produced by the bullets flying at him. He screamed, his voice sounding slower and thicker. Aron ran as fast as he could from there, his scream turning from fear to pain as a bullet hit him in the upper chest running through his shoulder. 

Aron kept running, panic and adrenaline coursing through his veins. 

  
  


* * *

 

 

Minhyun fell back onto the floor, dropping everything he had been carrying, moving to grip his chest instead. It hurt, the pain felt like someone had punched a hole through him. 

Baekho bolted up from his seat in the living room when he heard the clamour in the room over. “Minhyun?” He ran into the room, seeing Minhyun on the floor sent him into a frenzy. “Minhyun! What happened?” 

Minhyun was gripping his upper right side. “I- I don’t know! It hurts!!” He started sobbing as the pain took over him, and then: black. 

 

When Minhyun woke up, he was in a small hospital room, the fluorescent lights blinding him. 

“Oh, thank god you’re awake.” Baekho spoke, loosening his grip on Minhyun’s hand. “I was so scared. I thought you were going to have some kind of freak death.” 

Minhyun laughed. “Nah, I beat death once, remember?” 

Baekho sighed. “That’s not very funny.” 

“Mm, maybe not, but you really shouldn’t worry.” 

“How am I supposed to do that Min? You just passed out saying your chest was in pain! That sounded like a heart attack.” 

Smiling, Minhyun asked, “Well, what did the doctor say it was?” 

Baekho shook his head. “They don’t  _ know _ .” 

_ Oh. That  _ was  _ worrisome… _  “I still don’t think it’s too much to-” Minhyun cut himself off when he saw them. The spirit who had reanimated him all those years ago. 

Baekho noticed the change in Minhyun’s face. “What? What’s wrong?” 

Minhyun shook his head, whispering, “I need to be alone right now, please.” 

Baekho raised an eyebrow. “Alone? But-” 

Minhyun shook his head. “I’ll tell you when I’m better. I just need some time to myself right now. Please, Baek.” Baekho didn’t look like he wanted to go, but he stood anyway, leaving Minhyun alone with the spirit. 

The pale figure spoke before Minhyun could even form a question. “You felt it. That’s why you’re here.” 

“Felt what?” 

“The pain in you chest, it knocked you over and landed you in the hospital. Just like the one you’re destined to be with. They were the one who got hurt. Truth be told, I don’t know if they’ll make it out alive.” The figure looked at Minhyun sadly. “I can’t help them either. I can only help one end of  fated couple.” 

Minhyun’s breath caught in his throat. If they died, Minhyun would stay like this forever. 

“I have to get to him.” 

The figure shook their head, smiling. “All you can do now is wait. You wouldn’t reach them on time, anyway. You’re across the world from them and won’t be let out of here for a while.” 

He felt himself turn cold, he had knots forming in his stomach, almost impossible to shake off. “Will you let me know if he’s okay?” 

The figure smiled brighter. “You’ll know.” 

 

Minhyun sat in silence for half an hour. He didn’t know how he knew, but he felt in his heart that his destined partner was male. Minhyun knew he was closer to his frozen age than he had previously thought. 

While the last three years with Baekho had been everything anyone could have asked for, it hadn’t worked out. He disagreed a lot with Baekho and after a year of living together, they felt smothered by each other. In the end they had decided to remain as roommates, occasionally still acting domestic, if only to create the comfort of having a partner. Things never went much further than that, but Minhyun knew Baekho had grown to love him. He felt pity at times, but he couldn’t bring himself to lie to Baekho for longer than he already had. Especially after Minhyun began to notice silver hairs on Baekho’s head; much too early for a thirty-five year old man. 

When Minhyun had explained to Baekho what was happening, how he managed to still look 21 despite being the same age as him, it had become awkward. Baekho didn’t want to believe him at first, but slowly came to accept Minhyun’s story; it did make sense after all. Minhyun had a doctorate despite looking 21. Minhyun owned two orphanages, he donated thousands of dollars to charity every year, and he worked for the observatory for years. It all added up, Minhyun had to be older than he looked; once Baekho had kind of accepted that fact, he had no problem living with Minhyun- as friends. Bakeho figured if everything that Minhyun had told him was really truly  _ real _ , then there was someone out there for him, waiting. 

And he was okay with that, for the most part. 

 

Minhyun had spent the rest of the day in his hospital bed talking with Baekho. His chest was still in pain for the most part, but he was feeling better by the time 3 am rolled around. Baekho had climbed into his bed and held him close; Minhyun thanked the Moon for giving him such a good friend as he closed his eyes to rest. 

 

* * *

 

It took Aron a few weeks to be able to walk anywhere by himself at night. JR wouldn’t let him go anywhere otherwise. It took Aron even longer to stop having nightmares; he had terrible dreams of the bullet missing  and hitting him somewhere worse. JR would end up sleeping with him just to calm him down long enough, usually by making him laugh or by holding him until he fell asleep. 

 

That was a long time ago, though. Aron was now 23, and applying to grad school. His family had come to his graduation, holding up the same exact signs they did 5 years ago. He laughed when he was able to spot his sisters dancing and screaming as he walked off the stage to where they had agreed to meet up after the ceremony. 

“We’re so proud of you!!” they both shouted at him, wrapping him in hugs and kissing his face. He beamed, tears forming in his eyes. 

“Thank you, really!” 

His sisters gave him his flower lei, bouquet and balloons they had bought for him while they handed a camera to a passerby to take a picture of them together. 

“If mom and dad were alive, they’d be so, so proud, Aron.” his youngest sister said through her (almost) tears. 

Nodding, he held on tightly to his sister’s hands as best as he could with all the stuff he was carrying. Five pictures later, they all thanked the stranger and headed to their car. 

“When does your flight leave, again?” 

Aron smiled, a fuzzy feeling in his gut ruffling him all over again. “Tomorrow at 6 am.” 

“What time will you be getting there?” 

“I think about 2am. And from there probably another hour to my apartment, so probably closer to 3 or 4 am.” 

His sisters nodded, their last day with their brother was going to be anything but sad, they would make sure of that. 

They snuggled him up in their shared apartment, cuddling their brother and pretending not to cry. They watched Aron’s favorite movies, made his favorite American foods, and drank his favorite beer. “All stuff you might not get to fully enjoy when you’re in Korean space camp!” His eldest sister laughed. 

He laughed along, “You act like they don’t have any of this stuff in Korea…” 

The girls shrugged. “How would we know?”

 

At 6 am, Aron was aboard his plane, strapped in and pulling on his earbuds as the flight attendants gave the ok to do so. He watched downloaded movies on his laptop for the first few hours, ate some of his snacks and even ordered himself a vodka. His life was about to begin, he was so close to having his shit together, so close to getting what he wanted. 

Aron would be lying if he said he didn’t know why he picked the Korea Aerospace University. Rumor had it that Kang Minhyun was the new aeronautics advisor there, and when Aron had done the research, he knew it was  _ his  _ Minhyun. But the last name didn’t make sense. 

_ Had he gotten married? _

_ Had Minhyun lived a happy life this whole time? _

Aron didn’t know, but he planned on finding out for himself. 

 

His first week in Korea consisted of him running around Gangnam, getting used to the district and the subways to his new campus. He gained confidence in his Korean speaking to the little old ladies next door, and explained to them about his research. Many of them were thoroughly impressed that Aron was on the verge of a scientific breakthrough, offering to feed him every now and then. Accepting, Aron didn’t have to buy groceries for the first two weeks, having been given so much from from his neighbors. 

“Rice cake doesn’t go bad, does it?” he had asked, only for Mrs. Kim to laugh and pinch his cheeks. “After a few weeks it will. So eat it well.” Nodding, Aron ate his food with delight those first few days. 

  
His campus was a lot bigger than he had expected. He was a mechanical engineer, _and_ an astronomer; Which proved to be a problem since his main department was all the way at the end of campus, opposite from the astronomy department. 

Aron quickly invested in a bike, making sure he would be able to leave it in either department over night so he wouldn’t have to take the bus home instead of the train. His work focused on building a space rover that could record data from the exoplanets in the Andromeda Solar System without actually having to leave the Milky Way. He knew he was close to finishing his prototype, just a few more test runs, but was nervous about the upcoming launch in the next week. 

It wasn’t until he was sent to the Astronomy department to pick up data from the telescope that he had gotten a tight knot in his stomach. Ignoring it, Aron walked into the building through the back door. Finding the entrance to the Observatory, Aron found it to be locked. 

“Fuck, really?” 

He pulled on the door several more times, hoping it was just stuck; when it didn’t budge, Aron pulled as hard as he could, only to feel his own hand slip from the handle and onto his butt. 

“Are you okay?!” A voice called out from behind him. 

Aron groaned as he moved to the side to get up. “I- yeah, I’m fine!” 

Feet shuffled to where he remained on the floor. “Here, let me help you up.” A hand reached out to help Aron up from the floor. Taking it, Aron was pulled up from the tile pretty easily. 

“Whoa, thanks.” Aron smiled at the man who helped him up, only for both of them to freeze, their eyes locked on each other. 

Aron was the first to move back, still holding the hand that helped him up. Swallowing, Aron managed a weak, “Minhyun?”

The blonde’s eyes widened. “Impossible.” 

“Oh my god.” 

“Yeah.” 

Their hands still remained tangled together. Minhyun stumbled over his words. “How- when did you-” 

Aron stood still. “I go here.” 

Minhyun relaxed a bit then. “So you’re not stalking me?” 

Aron shrugged. “Kinda?” 

Minhyun pinched the bridge of his nose then. “Aron we’ve been over this you can’t just do things like that-”

“I’m not a child, Minhyun. I’m 23 years old, and I came here because I got in on a full ride. The fact you’re here is just a plus.” Aron stood his ground squaring his shoulders to make him seem bigger somehow. Minhyun was still taller, it forced a shiver to run down Aron’s spine as Minhyun grabbed the front of Aron’s shirt and threw him against the wall in an almost gentle way. 

“Stay here, I’ll open the door.” 

Nodding (and taking a deep breath), Aron followed Minhyun’s directions. 

The door opened, and Aron slipped in, following Minhyun to the database. “Just today’s stuff, or this whole week’s?” 

“Month.” 

“Oh.” Minhyun nodded, typing away at the keyboard, his eyebrows scrunching together. “What do you need a whole month’s worth of data for?” 

“Science, Kang.”

Minhyun froze. “Don’t call me that.” 

Aron shook his head. “It’s your name here, though.” 

The typing stopped. “What do you want from me, Aron?” 

“A chance.” 

Minhyun nodded. He never looked at Aron as he shook his head instead. “You’re a kid.” 

Aron began to get angry. “Is that all you see me as? A child?” 

Minhyun turned to face the shorter man. “Well, considering I’m about to turn 50 this year, yes.” 

Aron shrugged. “You look younger than I do.” 

“Appearance and actuality are two very different things, Aron. You should know this. You’re a scientist.” 

“And as a scientist, I know that there are things that even  _ we  _ can’t prove.” Aron was starting to become desperate. “You  _ promised _ you would give me a chance when I was older and could be a good man for you.” 

Minhyun didn’t want to listen, but the necklace around his neck weighed heavily on his body. He began to feel itchy there, and tugged on the leather strap. 

Aron didn’t miss the movement. He followed Minhyun’s hand as he adjusted the strap, a ring poking out from his open jacket. Eyes wide, Aron pulled it forward without permission. 

“Why do you still have this if you won’t give me a chance?” 

Minhyun choked on his words, scrambling for something to say he let out a “I never took it off. That’s  _ all _ .” 

Aron sighed, tugging on the necklace, slowly forcing Minhyun to lean down a bit as he did. Looking him in the eyes, Minhyun could see the fire light up in Aron’s eyes. “Prove to me that you don’t love me, and I’ll let you go.” 

Scoffing, Minhyun leaned back a bit. “And how do you suppose I do  _ tha- _ ” Minhyun felt lips press against his own, the taste of something so familiar he couldn’t do anything other than melt. He felt Aron let go of the necklace, no longer forcing him down, but he couldn’t pull away at all. Every instinct in his body was screaming for him to stay there, to stay with Aron and to  _ kiss him back _ . So he did. 

Minhyun lost all sense of self control, his hands finding their way to the small of Aron’s back, and to the back of his neck, pressing the shorter man to his frame. Aron let out a tiny noise of content, his lips moving slowly to savor the moment he knew he would probably never have again. 

To his surprise, Minhyun wasn’t letting go, instead, Minhyun grazed Aron’s bottom lip with his teeth, slipping his tongue in to play with Aron before he regretted doing this. 

Their breaths became increasingly shaky, Minhyun feeling Aron’s hands clutching onto his clothes for dear life. He smiled into the kiss when he realized that he was comfortable with this.  Nothing felt void of emotion, he felt warm, and for the first time in Minhyun’s new life, he felt alive. 

Aron pulled away first, his lips red from Minhyun’s kneading. Minhyun kept his eyes closed for a moment longer, allowing Aron to stare at his features up close for the first time since he was 14. “You’re more beautiful than I remember…” his breath was short, and his heart was racing. 

Minhyun opened his eyes. “God, shut up.” he caught his breath. “You can’t just say shit like that and expect me to just jump into your arms. I’m twice your age!” 

Aron laughed a little. “Since when has your age ever mattered to me, Minhyun? I’ve been in love with you since I was a kid. I just, I wish you could see why.” 

Minhyun put his hands on Aron’s shoulders, looking him dead center; his mind racing. He shook his head while looking at Aron in the eyes. 

“One date. Make it count.” 

  
  


* * *

 

 

To say that Aron was flying over the moon was an understatement. He was walking on stars the entire day leading up to his date with Minhyun. He had planned every little thing down to the second. He knew it wouldn’t go perfectly according to plan, but he had hoped it would. 

He picked Minhyun up at the Observatory, dressed in jeans and a knit sweater. It was still cold out, but he knew that walking around was going to make him heat up a little. 

Minhyun was still wearing his clothes from the night before, causing Aron to laugh. 

“You didn’t go home at all, did you?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Your sweater still has the mustard stain from yesterday when Jason ran into you with his sandwich.”

Minhyun’s face turned red. He had been hoping he didn’t look like he had woken up late from a nap he tried not to take in the first place. 

“Yeah, I fell asleep and woke up about 10 minutes before you came over. Sorry.” 

Aron shook his head. 

“I get it. It happens.” 

Minhyun slowly nodded. “So where are you taking me?” 

Aron smiled. “Somewhere nice.” 

“Don’t spend a fortune on me.” 

“I couldn’t if I wanted. It’s our first date, not me making something up to you.” 

Minhyun smiled. “Well, I would hope you would make it up to me for kissing me last week.” 

Aron stopped walking and turned. Minhyun froze as well, his hand going up to his mouth. “I don’t know why I said that, I’m sorry.” 

Aron laughed. “It’s fine if you’re nervous.” 

Minhyun  _ blushed _ . He hid his face immediately. “I’m not nervous. I swear.” 

Aron held his hands up. “Alright, I get it. You’re not nervous!” He smiled at the tall blonde. “But I am.” 

 

Aron took Minhyun to his favorite street vendor. They had rice, kimbap, tteokboki, sundae, anything that Minhyun wanted to eat, including the tornado fries. By the time they got to the final bite, Minhyun was holding his belly, head leaned back, a content smile on his face. 

“Wow. Okay that was a lot better than I thought it would be.” Minhyun stretched his arms as he spoke, his shirt lifting up. Aron tried not to stare, he really did but there it was: a small patch of hair on Minhyun’s belly leading down his pants to his-

Aron snapped out of it when he realized Minhyun had said something. “Huh?” 

Minhyun laughed, “I said you should take a picture.” 

Aron’s cheeks burned red. “Sorry.” 

“You’re not the first, or the last to stare at me.” 

Aron nodded slowly. “...right”

“Oh, I didn’t mean it like that. I just-” Minhyun didn’t know why he felt the urge to defend himself. “Most people are shocked by tall Asian dudes with white hair.” 

Aron smiled then. “I know that got  _ my _ attention.”

Minhyun laughed, a deep ‘hua huaaaahah’ sound. “So that’s why you like me? Insulting my intelligence is a good way to sweep me off my feet, apparently.” 

“I didn’t mean it that way, and you know it.” 

Minhyun licked the inside of his mouth before replying. “We should go for a walk.” 

Aron nodded, “I figured you’d want to after all this food.” 

Laughing, both men stood, Aron leaving a tip in the old lady’s jar in front of her. He smiled at her, whispered a “thank you” and followed Minhyun. 

The night was colder than Aron had expected but he was happy nonetheless. Minhyun looked up while he walked, slowly stretching his arms and sighing, a small cloud forming in the air. Aron had to hold his breath to not make any noise. 

Minhyun noticed. He always did. Every time someone was around him, they would either be so taken with him they’d become utter buffoons, or they would forget to breathe at times. He smiled; something about the way that Aron would push through and still try to prove he wasn’t completely smitten with him made this date interesting, and by extension, Aron interesting as well. 

 

By the end of the night, Minhyun was so at ease that he didn’t even mind when Aron asked to walk him back to his apartment.

“The real one, not your office. You need a good night’s sleep and probably a bath.” 

“Stop insulting me. It’s not attractive.” 

“Neither is that mustard stain.” 

Minhyun couldn’t help himself. He laughed out loud and agreed to Aron dropping him off at home. “Fine, let’s go.” 

He lead the way to the subway station half expecting Aron to want to turn back. When it was clear he wasn’t going anywhere, Minhyun smiled to himself. 

Aron quietly followed Minhyun, not because he wanted to stare at his butt for a little longer, or anything, but because he really wanted to make sure Minhyun got home and at least changed clothes. 

The subway was smelly, or maybe it was just because it was the end of the day and it was just a lingering smell. He couldn’t tell anymore. Minhyun stood up at the third to last stop, the one in Gangnam. 

“I’m not surprised you can afford this.” Aron muttered as he followed Minhyun once more. 

“Why not?” 

“You’re frugal enough to have saved up the millions you earned ten years ago. Plus you’re still working, so.”  

Minhyun nodded, “You spend a lot of time thinking about these things.” 

Aron huffed. “Yeah, I do. I grew up like that after my parents passed away. Had to take care of my sisters all by myself.”

Minhyun gasped slightly. “I-” 

Aron shrugged. “It’s all good. You couldn’t have known.” 

“How many sisters?”

“Two, seventeen years old; they’re twins. Beautiful and smart and amazing. I’m glad they turned out okay.”

Minhyun nodded. “So they’re in their last year of school?” 

Aron shook his head. “I pulled them out of school, put them on Independent Studies and now they’re freshmen in college.” 

Minhyun whistled. “You took care of them before you left. That’s kind of amazing.” 

Aron smiled brightly. “Thank you. For a long time I didn’t know if I was doing the right thing.” 

Minhyun put his hand on Aron’s shoulder. “You did great, Aron.”  

 

* * *

 

 

“This is me.” Minhyun said, gesturing to the door. 

“I need to pee.” 

“Oh my god, Aron.” 

“I do!!!” 

“Fine!” he moaned. 

Aron laughed as Minhyun opened the door letting him in. “Down the hall to the right!” 

Aron didn’t even wait to take his shoes off, running in the direction Minhyun told him to. Minhyun walked to his bedroom, slipping out of his clothes and changing into sweats and a t-shirt. 

Aron walked out of the bathroom, catching Minhyun pulling his shirt down. “Ah, good, you have more clothes.”

Minhyun snorted, “Shut up.” 

Aron held his hands up while laughing. “I’m just saying. I was really starting to get worried you only had one set of clothes, Minhyun.” 

The taller laughed, partly leading Aron to the door. Minhyun felt himself pausing, trying to stall. He didn’t feel like he wanted Aron to go. 

“Well, I should go.” Aron sighed, pointing to the door with his thumb. 

“I- yeah.” Minhyun said, moving his hand to the handle. 

“Yeah…” Aron held his breath a bit. His feet felt like they were cemented to the floor. He looked for something to say, his heart racing and mouth staying wide open as he tried to come up with another lame excuse to stay around Minhyun when he noticed something. 

“Hey..did you rub your hair with permanent marker or..?” Aron asked, staring at Minhyun’s bangs. 

Minhyun looked at Aron in confusion, eyebrow raising. “No, what?” 

“Oh, you have black in your hair, so I thought maybe..?” 

Minhyun’s face paled. “My hair..?” 

Aron nodded. “It looks kinda cool.” he said as he brought his hand up to brush the strands of black hair back. 

Minhyun reached up to his hair. His hair was  _ black _ ? Throughout all these years no matter what he had tried, he had never been able to make his hair black. No amount of dyes, paints...anything. Nothing had ever worked. So why was his hair suddenly black?

Minhyun panicked and ran to the bathroom. Aron quickly followed him, worried that he had done something wrong. Minhyun switched on the lights, looking at his hair, seeing the patch of black hair in between all his silvery blonde. The voice of the moon began to ring in his head, over and over.  _ Then you will begin to live again.  _

Minhyun almost screamed when he saw Aron pop up behind him. 

“You..” Minhyun started. 

“I swear I didn’t do it!”

“No, that’s not-” Minhyun shook his head. There was no way in hell this...this  _ kid _ was his one true love. 

“Minhyun?” 

Minhyun leaned back against the sink, facing Aron and began to laugh. His head craned back as he did. He looked up at the ceiling. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” 

Aron was in shock. “Who are you talking to?” 

Minhyun stopped laughing, slowly turning into giggles. “The moon.” 

Aron stared. He did that a lot around Minhyun, he noticed. Because he was perfect. Because he was everything he wanted to be. Because he was the love of his life. And even now, when he sounded insane, Aron loved him. 

“The...moon?” Aron asked blankly. 

Minhyun nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. “What, you never wondered how I still look this good when I’m old enough to be your dad?” 

Aron snorted. “More like daddy, but whatever.” 

Minhyun raised one finger, ready to reprimand Aron then and there before realizing he  _ might _ have liked that a little bit too much. Shaking his head, he smiled to himself. 

“It’s a long story, and I promise I will tell you one day, but pretty much, I have a beautiful curse on me from the moon.” 

Aron nodded slowly. 

“My hair isn’t supposed to turn back until..” Minhyun sighed. 

Aron’s eyebrows scrunched together. “Tell me. I’ve got time.” 

Minhyun sighed for the fifth time in two minutes. Resigning to himself, he sighed once more before gesturing Aron follow him to the living room. 

“Sit. I’m going to make some tea since this might take a while.” 

Aron nodded and waited for Minhyun to come back. 

 

When he did, Minhyun looked a little older in his eyes than he ever had. Aron remained silent, waiting. 

Minhyun handed him his cup and sat down in front of Aron. 

He let him talk all night until Minhyun cried, and eventually they both settled into an embrace where they both remained til morning. 

  
  


* * *

 

 

The next morning, Minhyun woke up with arms around him, his face buried in Aron’s chest. There was no mistaking who it was. He felt so at peace with the world he actually cuddled back up to Aron while half-asleep. Who was he kidding, he was fully awake now, but he didn’t want to leave. Aron was so soft, so  _ right _ . Minhyun simply gave in and remained with him for a little longer. 

Aron’s phone sounded from inside of his pocket, the buzzing startling Aron awake with a scream. 

Minhyun was thrown off the couch with a yelp, and Aron sat up straight. 

“Oh, god!” He yelled, reaching into his pocket for his phone. “What!” he screamed into the speaker not waiting to notice who called him. 

“Oh, oh. Grace, slow down!” Aron was much more calm now. His voice turned soft, causing Minhyun to peek up from under his hair at Aron.  _ Who the hell is Grace? _

“Oh, great. Can’t you two figure this out on your own? It’s like 4 am in Korea, you know!” A pause as the other end spoke. “Oh my god. Tell Hannah to get on the phone and -” Aron let the girl speak, sighing. “You two are going to kill me one day. Mom and dad would be rolling in their grave right now because of you both!”

_ Ah, his sisters. _

Minhyun slowly sat up right, moving to sit on the couch. Aron’s eyes widened for a bit, seemingly remembering where he was, mouthing a “sorry”. Minhyun nodded sleepily, listening to Aron speak on the phone with his sisters, loudly. 

Aron watched as Minhyun fell back asleep, not having gotten proper sleep in days, he imagined. 

After hanging up the phone, he stood up and moved to tuck Minhyun into his arms, picking him up and strolling to his bed. He was heavier than he thought, but it wasn’t a long walk. 

Minhyun moaned as soon as his head hit his pillow, immediately wrapping his arms around it and holding it close. 

Aron smiled dreamily. He looked so perfect, like an actual angel. He knew he was probably allowed to sleep here now, but he thought against it. Finding paper in the kitchen, Aron left a note. 

 

_ Call me for a second date. _

 

* * *

 

 

A second date turned into a third, and a fourth until weeks passed and soon enough, Aron was holding hands with Minhyun on their lunch break from research. 

He was over the moon with love for Minhyun, who hair started growing more and more black streaks as the days passed. Minhyun felt his heart swell whenever Aron would bring him dumb things to pass the time with. Crossword puzzles, Sudoku, coloring pages that looked like he pulled them out of a children’s book. Sometimes it was just the way Aron would talk to him, like he was constantly looking for advice. He was treated like a partner, and Minhyun loved it. He was falling, fast. He was terrified, really. Every time Aron smiled at him, his face lit up as well. 

Months passed, and Minhyun hadn’t asked Aron over to his home since that day. But this time, he did. Something about the way that Aron had been acting all night had Minhun feeling giddy, butterflies rocketing around in his stomach. 

Aron noticed too, the way that Minhyun had gotten a little antsy, like he wanted to say something, but didn’t know how. So he did. 

“Can I walk you home again?”

Minhyun smiled brightly. “Yes, please.” 

Aron held his hand out, and they made their way to the station. 

 

Minhyun’s apartment looked the same. He was a little glad about that, it made him feel welcome. Aron took off his shoes, walking to the kitchen as Minhyun led him there. 

“Coffee?” 

Aron nodded. “Please.” 

They sat in silence for a little while, simply drinking their coffee in comfortable silence. 

“You-”

“You-”

They laughed. “I’m sorry, you go first.” Aron said, his smile never leaving his face.

Minhyun nodded, “You wanna watch a movie or something?” 

Aron nodded, gulping down on his coffee. 

Minhyun moved to the living room, popping in the first movie he saw. He had a feeling they weren’t going to pay much attention anyway. 

Aron sat, pulling Minhyun close to him, their bodies fitting together perfectly. 

Minhyun sighed as the commercials rolled on. 

Aron held his hand, rubbing his fingers along Minhyun’s knuckles. “The Karate Kid?” 

Minhyun laughed. “Shut up, it was the greatest film of the 80’s ever, I watched it like 4 times in theaters.” 

Aron laughed. “Oh, man that’s so weird. You  _ did _ actually experience it, didn’t you?” 

Laughing, Minhyun nodded, turning to face Aron to make a face at him, only to be met with lips. 

Aron was kissing him gently, with more feeling than he had originally intended. Minhyun melted into the kiss, bringing his hands up to Aron face, turning to face him, accidentally biting Aron in the process. 

“Sorry.” He whimpered as Aron bit him back.

“Don’t be.” 

Aron leaned away from Minhyun’s face to move down to his neck, causing Minhyun to squirm. “It tickles.” he said, and Aron nodded, moving further down instead, biting Minhyun’s neck at the base. 

“Mmm…” Minhyun felt really good now. “Bedroom..” 

Aron shook his head. “Too far.” 

  
  


* * *

 

 

Minhyun woke up in the middle of the night. The tv was still on, playing the DVD menu over and over for who knows how long. He smiled as he watched Aron snore. He was happy. 

He got up, walking around the living room looking for his clothes. Pulling them on, he went to the kitchen for water. The night sky looked beautiful as always from his balcony, but he never found a reason to go out and look at it. 

Tonight, however, Minhyun felt the urge to walk out there and watch the stars for a bit. 

He pulled open the door, letting the crisp early summer air wake him up a little. 

“You look happy.” 

Minhyun nodded without looking around at the voice. “I am. Thank you.” 

The blonde figure smiled at his favorite human. “He really loves you, you know.” 

Minhyun nodded once more, his lips turning up into a grin. “I know. I love him, too.” 

The moon looked overly pleased. “I knew you would.”

They remained in silence for a little bit longer. “You don’t need me anymore. But I will always be watching.” Minhyun turned to look at the figure once more. The blonde hair, the deep piercing eyes, and the beautiful bow shaped lips. The moon always looked somewhere between an angel and a human. Sometimes less other worldly, and more human. Today however, the Moon chose to look human, less shimmery, and more solid. 

“Happy 22nd birthday, Hwang Minhyun.” The moon said, smiling that brilliant smile once more before fading away.

“Thank you…” He whispered. 

Minhyun felt him get close before he saw him. Aron wrapped his arms around his waist. “What are you doing out here?” he said, placing a kiss on his neck. 

Minhyun knew he was on his tippy toes to be able to do this, so he turned to face him. 

“I woke up and wanted to look at the stars.” 

“Mm, okay.” Aron said, wrapping the blanket he held around the both of them. “Let’s go watch.” 

They sat on the small lounge chair Minhyun had outside, and curled up together. They watched the stars for a while in silence. Before Aron moved his arms from under Minhyun. 

“Happy birthday, Minhyun-ah.” 

Minhyun looked at Aron’s hand that was poking out now, holding a ring. 

He smiled. “The moon  _ did _ say you loved me.” he laughed as he scooted to be able to flip himself over and face Aron. “I’m going to keep my promise to give you a chance, Aron.” 

The older boy laughed. “I thought you already did.” 

Minhyun laughed out loud. “I mean it. I’m going to keep my promise forever. As long as the moon lets me, I will love you back, as long as  _ you  _ love  _ me _ .” 

Aron smiled. “That sounds like the best beginning of forever.” 

Rolling his eyes, Minhyun kissed Aron once more before laying down to sleep once more. 

“It sounds like a plan.” 


End file.
